1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to multi-functional compositions adapted to provide ambient lighting, germicidal properties, and/or electrical conductivity.
2. Background of the Invention
Low cost, easily formable compositions that are adapted to provide sterile, renewable surfaces while also capable of transmitting diffuse, ambient high-quality light would be of great benefit. The current invention discloses in part such compositions and methods of their use. Such compositions are useful in multiple environments, including hospital rooms.
For example, it is well known that a typical hospital patient's experience in an operating room is a frightening experience, often worsened by the garish and harshly lighted environment. In addition to disquieting the hospital patient, sedation rates are impacted by the nature of the room environment. As a result, an invention that improves the mood and sense of calm of a patient would be of benefit. While hospitals have begun to utilize some forms of ambient lighting in various hospital environments such as in diagnostic rooms or in routine procedure rooms such as catheterization labs, there is no adequate system for providing ambient lighting to a hospital surgical room environment. In part, such compositions must be adapted for the particularly rigid sterility requirements of a hospital operating room. Prior art lighting systems provide minimal lighting, i.e. an ambient light source in one small position on a wall or ceiling, and therefore do not create an immersive lighting environment. Also, the ambient lighting is provided by focusing a colored light source onto the front of a wall, typically resulting in a washed-out light. The presence of these lights in the operating room environment is conceivably a safety hazard, as they are difficult to clean (if they are cleaned at all) and provide additional surface area exposed to biohazards (thereby providing a medium for their growth). As such, a successful ambient lighting system would have to incorporate a composition adapted for the particular requirements of an operating room environment, namely, sterility requirements and fire, water, and electrical safety requirements. Such a composition is also further suitable for non-hospital environments such as personal or commercial residences.
Titanium dioxide is a naturally occurring form of oxidized titanium and has found many industrial applications. It is cheap, widely available, and has been recognized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as harmless to humans. It is most commonly recognized as a white pigment in paints or cosmetics. Less well known are its photocatalytic properties. When added to coating materials such as paint or when placed on surfaces such as windows, it breaks down organic compounds and acts as both a sterilizer and deodorizer. This activity is greatly enhanced by exposure to ultraviolet radiation.
Acrylic polymers containing aluminum trihydrate are surface materials, which have demonstrated useful properties. Typically, such compounds are inert, nontoxic and hypoallergenic. Additionally, such compounds are non-porous and because they do not absorb materials, will limit bacterial or fungicidal growth. Polymers such as this may also be transparent. Polycarbonates are a group of thermoplastic polyesters that are easily molded and thermoformed.
It is an object of this invention to provide a composition adapted to supply a diffuse ambient light wherein its intensity, color, and on/off state are controlled wirelessly by a surgeon or other person.
It is an object of this invention to provide a composition adapted to provide an immersive lighting experience.
It is a further objective of this invention to provide a composition adapted to allow sensitivity to conductivity changes.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a composition adapted to allow current to pass from one surface of the composition to a distal surface sufficient to allow a detector to sense an operator's touch on a surface.
It is an objective of this invention to provide a composition which allows light to pass from one surface to another while providing that transferred light is evenly diffused, is not spotted, and is evenly mixed with other light sources directed at the surface.
One or more of the above objects is met in whole or in part by this invention, and further objects may be realized by consideration of the description and claims below. The scope and applicability of such a composition as adapted are readily apparent to those skilled in the art and are not limited to the specific embodiments described or environments such a composition is described as being used in.